The footage shows them raising chicks on a flat area near the Ning River in the Limi Valley of Namkha Rural Municipality in Humla.
What you should know
The charming and captivating bird, the black-necked crane, has been found to have given birth to a baby for the first time in Nepal.
The chick was recorded raising in a flat area near the Ning Khola in the Limi Valley of Namkha Rural Municipality of Humla. Bird Conservation Society (BCN) Vulture Conservation Officer Ankit Vilas Joshi and Senior Research Officer Kiran Gosai recently saw a chick with a pair of storks.
The team, which had been camping at an altitude of 4,500 meters in difficult geographical terrain for four days, had seen the chick for two days. The team had also camped in the Shakya Khola and Ghya Khola valleys to search for the Kalikantha stork. Carrying luggage on a porter and mule, they spent 22 days under tents in three places in the bitter cold, searching for the Kalikantha stork, but it was seen with its chick only in one place.
The chick was seen with its mother, which is the first record of a baby being born in Nepal, said ornithologist Dr. Hemsagar Baral. ‘This has added excitement to bird lovers,’ he said, ‘Now, from the Tarai to the Himalayas, the storks can be seen from nesting to raising their chicks.’
The Joshi-led team will also go to Humla in April 2026 to study the Kalikantha stork further.’
Although the Kalikantha stork has been seen in Humla since 2013, this is the first time that it has been seen with its chicks, said Ankit Vilas Joshi, the vulture conservation officer of the Bird Conservation Association. Joshi said that it was an unforgettable moment to see the mother with her chicks after almost 12 years. He said that after being found raising her chicks, the migratory bird has changed its identity and become a native. After staying in the nest for 30/32 days, it hatches its chicks in 100 days.’
The Kalikantha storks, which have short necks and legs, are beautiful and charming. The black head, upper neck, and folded inner wings contrast with the pale, fluffy body of the adult. They nest near water, swamps, and streams. The male and female Kalikanthas, which lay up to two eggs, raise their young together.
The Kalikantha stork lives across the Himalayas. During the summer, this bird comes to breed in April and returns in October. In Nepal, it comes as a summer visitor. During the winter, it follows the mountains from west to east.
Its largest population is in Tibet. It is then found in Ladakh and Bhutan in India. When it migrates in winter and reaches the Bumthang Valley in Bhutan, the locals give it a grand welcome.
Among the four types of cranes found in Nepal, only the stork has a record of hatching chicks, but now the Kalikantha has also hatched chicks, says ornithologist Krishna Prasad Bhusal. Which gives the impression of a Kalikantha bird from afar . The Kalikantha crane, which lives in pairs, lives with one life partner . Its dance is very beautiful and captivating . It is a joy to see it bowing before each other, spreading its wings and dancing wildly, said ornithologist Hathan Chaudhary.
Out of the 15 species of cranes in the world, 5 are found in India and 4 in Nepal . The cranes found in Nepal include the Karyang Kurung, Lakshman, Kalikantha and Saras .
